Electric toaster



A. G. HORVATH ELECTRIC TOASTER Jan. 6, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan.10, 1947 INVENTOR. Anthony 6'. Hort 12th i ATTORNEY.

Jan. 6, 1953 A. G. HORVATH 2,624,253

ELECTRIC TOASTER Filed Jan. 10. 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 59 as a as 8 J INVEN TOR. Fly. 4 Alli/10723317011 01};

; ATTORNEY.

Jan. 6, 1953 A. G. HORVATH ELECTRIC TOASTER Filed Jan. 10, 1947 5Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. AnlhonyGi/Vorvath BY ATTORNEY.

l atenied Jan. 6, 1953 ELECTRIC TOASTER Anthony G. Horvath, Dayton,Ohio, assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a

corporation of Ohio Application January 10, 1947, Serial No. 721,225

Claims.

The present invention relates to electric bread toasters and moreparticularly to a thermal timing mechanism for timing the duration ofthe toasting interval whereby the operator may obtain toast cookedexactly as he or she desires.

In the past it has been the usua1 practice to time the toastingoperation by a clockwork mechanism. Clock timers have the defect thattoasting time is fixed and accordingly the bread is progressivelytoasted more and more for each succeeding toasting operation because thetoaster itself is hotter for each succeeding toasting operationespecially when the succeeding operations follow each other in rapidsuccession.

An attempt has been made to overcome this diiiiculty by providing acompensating thermostat to speed up the operation of the clockworkmechanism for each succeeding toasting operation.

Such timers have not been entirely satisfactory because of theircomplexity and of their unreliableness in operation.

As a result thermal timers have been developed. Thermal timersinherently are self compensating in that the timer as a whole alsobecomes progressively hotter for each succeeding toasting operation andaccordingly shortens the toasting period for each succeeding operation.

It has been found, however, that thermal timers have a tendency toover-compensate. That is, for each succeeding toasting operation, thetoast is cooked progressively less and less for any particular timersetting.

This result comes about by reason of the fact that heat is stored inparts of the thermal timer from the preceding toasting operation and asa consequence the timer becomes hotter and hotter at the start of eachsucceeding toasting operation. This causes the thermally responsiveelement of the timer to act faster and faster for each succeedingtoasting operation.

According to the present invention, this difiiculty is remedied byallowing the thermal timer to cool after each toasting operation beforethe succeeding toasting operation is initiated so that no toastingoperation can be initiated until the thermally responsive element of thetimer is at its proper temperature to properly time the succeedingtoasting operation.

The prior art teaches the preliminary cooling of a thermal timer beforethe next succeeding toasting operation can be initiated.

However, in prior art devices, it has been necessary for the operator toWait until the timer has cooled before the next succeeding toastingoperation can be initiated.

According to the present invention the operator can immediately insertnew slices to be toasted after a prior toasting operation withoutwaiting for the thermal timer to cool. The succeeding toasting operationwill then proceed automatically without any further attention from theoperator.

According to the present invention, a second toasting operation may bebegun immediately after a preceding one without waiting for thethermally responsive element to cool. The toast carriages are latched intoasting position regardless of the position of the thermally responsiveelement.

If the thermally responsive element is cold when new slices are insertedthe Succeeding operation will begin immediately. If the thermallyresponsive element is still warm, the toast carriers will be latched intoasting position regardless. The operator need not even know that thesucceeding toasting operation has not begun. The thermally responsiveelement is merely given a chance to cool and the succeeding toastingoperation will proceed automatically without any further attention fromthe operator. This will assure that the thermally responsive element isproperly conditioned for each succeeding toasting operation irrespectiveof the time interval between the end of a preceding toasting operationand the insertion of fresh bread into the toaster.

It is known in prior devices to heat a bimetal timing element by meansof an auxiliary heater energized simultaneously with the main heatersand to direct the heat from the auxiliary heater to the bimetal timer bymeans of a reflector.

According to this invention, heat is directed from an auxiliary heaterto a bimetal timer by means of a reflector which is adjustable bothmanually and thermostatically to vary the quantity of heat which istransmitted to the bimetal timer so as to control the duration of thetoasting interval to adjust for light, medium, or dark toast as well asto compensate for rises in toaster temperature as the temperature of thetoaster rises with repeated use in rapid succession.

According to this invention, the toast carriers may be moved to toastingposition and latched in that position whether or not the thermallyresponsive element has cooled. A signal light is lit when the carriersare moved to toasting position whether or not the thermal timer hascooled from a preceding operation in order to simulate operation Thethermal timer then cools and the succeeding toasting operation proceedsWithout any further attention from the operator.

According to this invention, a secondary carriage is provided which ismovable vertically relative to the bread carriers and is spring-biasedto downward position. If the thermal timer has cooled, the secondarycarriage moves with the bread carriers to downward position and atoasting operation is initiated immediately. However, if the thermaltimer has not had time to cool the bread carriers are neverthelesslatched in downward position. However, a stop is projected into the pathof the secondary carriage and it is prevented from moving to itslowermost position, which prevents energization of the main andsecondary heaters. When the timer has cooled the stop is removed fromthe path of the secondary carriage and the succeeding toasting operationis then initiated.

According to the present invention a thermal timer is provided whichembodies mechanism which is movable through a position to initiate atoasting operation when the thermally responsive element is cooled butin which the mechanism is prevented from moving through that positionwhen the thermally responsive element is hot.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent asthe description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a toaster with the parts broken awayto show the timer according to this invention;

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view through the mechanism compartmentdepicting some of the details of the timing mechanism according to thisinvention;

Figure 3 is a cross sectional View of the mechanism compartmentaccording to this invention taken on line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a top plane view of the mechanism according to thisinvention;

Figure 5 depicts details of the timing mechanism according to thisinvention when the thermal element is hot and the bread carriers inlowered position;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 showing the position of the partswhen the thermal element is cool and the carriers are moved to loweredposition; and

Figure 7 is a wiring diagram showing how the elements are electricallyconnected.

Referring to the drawings, a plastic base l0 forms a support for theentire toaster and upon which are mounted all of the parts of thetoaster. An appearance housing II fits into an interior peripheralshoulder in the base IE] and covers all the working parts of thetoaster. The appearance housing II is provided with bread receivingslots I2 into Which bread is inserted for toasting purposes A base plate[3 is mounted within the peripheral edge of the base In below the ledgewhich supports the appearance housing II. The base plate 13 forms asupport or attaching means for al1 of the working parts of the toaster.

A crumb tray l4, Figs. 2 and 3, is removably mounted in a bottom openingin the base I!) by spring fingers 9 which cooperate with the edges 8 ofan opening in the base I!) to hold the tray in assembled position. Thetray [4 is positioned to receive crumbs from the toasting chambers andmay be emptied after removal as the occasion arises. Beyond the openingformed by edge 8, the base is provided with other openings for providingair circulation through the toaster during operation.

Rigidly attached to the base plate [3 are a pair of spaced parallelvertically extendingguide posts.

15 of channel formation having their closed sides facing each other. Attheir upper ends the guide posts are supported by a bracket 20 whichextends forwardly from a dividing plate [1 near its upper end. Thedividing plate I! divides the interior of the toaster proper into amechanism compartment I8 and a toasting chamber l9.

Bread carriers l6 extend rearwardly from the main carriage plate 22through elongated openings 2| in the plate I! so that the carriers I6may be moved from an upper bread receiving position where the bread willextend slightly above the appearance housing ll through the openings l2,to a lower toasting position where the carriers it are positionedbetween spaced heaters 23. The main carriage plate 22 is guided forvertical movement by rollers 24 which cooperate with closed sides of thechannel guide rods iii to guide the main carriage plate 22 and thecarriers IS in a straight line vertical movement.

Extending from each side of the plate 22 and bent rearwardly as at 25are a pair of extensions which carry rollers 26 cooperating with thearms 2l of a manually manipulating lever to move the main carrier plate22 and the bread carriers IE to toasting position. The arms 21 arepivoted at their rear ends to the outside of the side walls (not shown)of the toasting chamber l9 and extend through elongated openings 28 inthe dividing plate H. At their forward end the arms 21 are bentforwardly at 29 to extend through elongated openings 30 in theappearance housing II. On the exterior of the appearance housing ll amanipulating handle 3| is secured to the forward extending ends 29 ofthe arms 27.

The main carriage late 22 and th bread carriers l6 are spring-biased toupper bread receiving position by tension spring 32 secured at its upperend to a hook 33 on the bracket 20 and at its lower end is anchored to ahook 34 extending rearwardly from the main carriage plate 22. A dash potmechanism 35 of any suitable construction is connected between bracket20 and the main carriage plate 22 in order to cushion the impact of thespring 32 as it pulls the main carrier plate 22 and its associated partsto its upper bread receiving position.

A latch mechanism, to be later described in detail, is generallyindicated by the reference numeral 36. It is mounted on the base platel3 and is adapted to latch the main carriage plate 22 and bread carriersl6 in their toasting position when moved to that position. Manual meansfor releasing the latch independently of the timer is provided in theform of a link 3'! connected at its lower end to the latch release leverof the latch mechanism 36. The link 31 extends upwardly through anopening in the lug 38 welded to one of the arms 2'! and has a bent end39 which engages the lug 38 when the arms 21 are moved reversely in anupper direction to release the latch mechanism 36. Hooks 40 areconnected to the extensions 25 to limit upward movement of the arms 21relative to the main carriage plate 22.

The secondary carriage plate 58 is mounted for vertical movement on themain carriage plate 22 by means of rivets 5| extending through slots 52in the plate 22 and is biased to its lowermost position by the spring 53having its upper end anchored to one of the rivets 5| and its lower endanchored to a lug 54 struck from the plate 22.

Extending, forwardly from the secondary carriage plate 50 is a lug 55which engages a lug 56 of the-latch mechanism 36 to prevent, undercertain conditions which will be explained hereinafter, the secondarycarriage plate 50 from moving to its lowermost position along with themain carriage plate 22.

Extending forwardly from the secondary carriage plate 50 at each endthereof are a pair of arms 51 having struck out spring tabs 58, struckout pintles 59 and struck out stops and BI. A ceramic rod 62 extendsthrough the openings formed by the spring tabs 58 and is held fromendwise movement by the tabs 58. Upon the rod 62 is mounted a resistancewire 53 which forms an auxiliary heater for the timer as will beexplained hereinafter. The pintles 59 form a pivotal support for areflector 64 which is spring-biased by a spring I55 away from the heater63 against the stop 60 as shown in Figure 3. The struck out portions GIform stops for the reflector M to prevent excess movement of thereflector 64 in a clockwise direction from the position shown in Figure3.

Rotatably mounted on the base plate I3 in front of the latch mechanism36 is a shaft 08 carrying a cam 61 at its upper end. The cam 61 isadapted to contact an arm 68 of reflector 64 under certain conditionswhich will be explained in more detail hereinafter. At its lower end theshaft 66 carries a manipulating knob I0 having a portion extendingthrough an opening in the front of the base I0 and carrying indicia asshown in Figure 4. The cam 01 is loosely mounted on the upper end of theshaft 60 and is connected to the lower end of the shaft by a spirallywound bimetal 69 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

Extending downwardly from each end of the secondary carriage plate 50are a pair of conducting arms II which at their lower ends carrycontacts I2 adapted to engage spaced fixed contacts I3 mounted on baseplate I3 when the secondary carriage plate 50 is in its lowermostposition. At their upper ends the conducting arms II are connected tothe ends of the resistance wire '63 as shown at I4 in Figure 1.

As shown in the wiring diagram of Figure 7 one of the contacts I3 isconnected to one side of the line, the other to one side of main heaters23 and the other side of the main heaters 23 is connected to the otherend of the line so that when contacts I2 are in contact with contacts 13the heaters 23 and 03 are connected in series.

A signal light I5 is mounted beneath the base plate I3 immediatelybehind the knob I0, which may be made or translucent material, s0 as toilluminate the knob I0 when the light I5 is illuminated. A spring switchI6 is adapted to be closed by a lug 11 mounted upon one of the arms 25of the main carriage plate 22 when the main carriage plate 22 is movedto toasting position. By reference to Figure 7 it will be seen that thesignal light I5 is connected in parallel with the main heaters 23.

Latch mechanism The latching mechanism generally indicated by thereference numeral 30 comprises a bracket I00, having a front side wallIOI, a rear side wall I 02, an end wall I03, and outwardly bent feet I04which may be welded or otherwise secured to the base plate I3. The endwall I03 has a portion I05 extending above the side walls I0! and I02,which has a recess for supporting one end of a bimetallic strip I06.

The opposite end of the bimetallic strip I06 is supported in a recess inthe upper end of a member I07 which is pivoted to the end walls IOI andI02 as at I08. Compression is applied to the opposite ends of thebimetallic strip I00 by a spring I09 anchored at one end to a lug IIO ofpivoted member I07 and at its opposite end by an eye in the inner end ofthe screw III which passes through an opening in the end I03 0f thebracket I00. A nut I I2 is threaded onto the outer nd of the screw IIIand contacts the end I03 to apply more or less tension to the spring I09and correspondingly more or less compression to the ends or" thebimetallic strip I06. This constitutes a factory adjustment for thebimetal strip I00. The bimetallic strip I05 constitutes the thermallyresponsive element of the thermal timer for controlling the duration ofthe toasting interval.

The bimetallic strip I06 is so made that it will be flexed in an upwardbowed position when cold and in a downward bowed position when hot. Apin II3 extends through openings in the side walls IOI and I02 of thebracket I00 and extends beyond the inner wall I02 as shown in Figure 3to form a shoulder spaced inwardly from the inner wall I02. Abuttingagainst the shoulder of pin I I3 and pivotally mounted thereon, is themain latch release lever II4 which is spaced inwardly from the innerwall I02 of bracket I00. The pivot H3 is near the left hand end of thebracket I00, as viewed in Figs. 1, 5 and 6, and the lever I It extendsbeyond the right hand end of the bracket I00. The lower end of link 31,previously mentioned, is pivoted to the right hand end of latch releaselever I Id.

The main latch lever II 5 includes a hook II5 which is adapted tooverlie a projection IIE struck forwardly from the main cariage plate 22to hold the main carriage plate 22 and the bread carriers IS in theirtoasting position against the bias of the spring 32. The lever H4 isspring-biased clockwise by spring II? so that the right hand endnormally rests against the inner feet I04 of the bracket I00. Aspreviously mentioned, upward movement of arm 2l' by manipulation of thehand piece SI will cause the lug 38 to engage the hook 39 of rod 3 so asto lift the right hand end of lever IIt to move it clockwise and movethe hook II 5 from above the lug H6 and release the main carriage plate22. This constitutes the manual release for the toaster carrierindependently of the timer.

The main latch lever II4 extends beyond the pivot II3 to the left beyondthe end I03 of the bracket I00 and has an inturned lug H8 which extendsforwardly beyond the inner wall I02 of bracket I00 as shown in Figure 3.Immediately above the hook II5 the lever H4 has a cam surface II9 whichis engaged by the lug IIB of the plate 22 so as to move the lever H4slightly in a counter-clockwise direction against the bias of the springH7 until the lug H0 clears the hook II5 to permit the spring II'I tomove the hook II 5 to a position overlying the struck out portion H0 soas to latch the main carriers 22 and the bread carriers in theirlowermost toasting position.

Pivoted at I20 to the upper right hand end of walls NH and I02 and lyingbetween the walls HM and I02 is an actuating lever I21 which is ofinverted U-shape in cross section as shown in Figure 3. The actuatinglever I2I has a pair of side walls I22 and I23 lying between andextending above the walls I III and I02 of the bracket I00. Thelefthandend of lever I 2I is rounded at I24 and overlies the lug H8*of lever II4 so that when lever I 2I is moved counter-clockwise the lever- I I4 isalso moved counter-clockwise to move the hook H5 from above the lug H6and thus release the toast carriers.

At its central portion the front wall I 22 of lever I2I is cut and bentforwardly'at spaced points as shown at I25, upwardly as shown at I26 andrearwardly as shown at I2'I to form a tab overlying the bimetal I06 anda portion I28 extending directly upwardly to a point beneath the bimetalI06 as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. 3

Atits central portion the rear wall I23 of the lever I2I is bentrearwardly to form a horizontal abutment I29, bent upwardly to form avertically exte'nding portion I 30 and then forwardly to form a secondtab I3I overlying the bimetal I06. A portion of the vertically extendingportion I30 is also bent rearwardly to form 3, lug I32 as shown atFiguresBA, 5, and 6.

Pivoted at I34 to the outside of the inner wall I02 of the bracket I isa stop lever I33 which is normally spring-biased in a counter-clockwisedirection by a spring I35 as shown in Figs. 2, 5, and 6. The lug 56previously mentioned is struck rearwardly from the lock lever I33 so asto underlie-lug 55 on the secondary carriage plate 50 at all times.Immediately above its pivot point I34 the lock lever I33 is providedwith a hook portion I36 which underlies the horizontal abutment I29 ofactuating lever I2I which extends rearwardly from the rear wall I23 ofthe lever I2I when in the position shown in Figure but which clears theabutment I23 when-the lock lever is rotated clockwise as shown in Figure6.

The upstanding portions I20 and I30 of actuating lever I2I form supportsfor a pin I40 underlying the bimetal I06 and forming a pivotal supportfor a locking latch I4I which lies against the outer side of the portionI30 and is spring biased in a clockwise direction by a spring I42 whichholds the tail I43 of lever I4I against the rearwardly turned portionI32 of the lever I2I. The latch MI is free to pivot in acounter-clockwise direction because the portion I3I of lever I2I isturned in the opposite direction as shown in Fig. 5. The hooked end I46of the locking latch I4I overlies a lug I45 to hold the lock lever I33against clockwise movement under certain conditions.

Operation when cold It will be noted that when both the main carriageplate 22 and the secondary carriage plate 50 are in downward positionthe heater 63 overlies the bimetal I06 and the reflector 64 will directheat from the heater 63 to the bimetal I06 in an amount dependent uponthe position of the cam 61. If the operator desires dark toast he willmove the knob I0 so as to cause the reflector 64 to pivotcounter-clockwise under the action of its spring 65 so as to direct onlya portion of the heat from the heater 63 to the bimetal I06 so that itwill take a longer time to heat the bimetal I06 and thus prolong thetoasting interval.

The operator will then insert bread slices through the openings I2 inthe appearance housing II so as to rest on the bread carriers I6andproject slightly from the openings I2. The hand piece 3| is then graspedand moved to its lowermost position as shown in Fig. 3. This will causethe arms 2'! to press downwardly on the rollers 26 and move the maincarriage plate 22 and bread carriers I6 downwardly to toasting positionwhere 8 the breadslices will be positioned betweenthe spaced heaters 23.

The lug H6 on the main carrier plate 22 will also move downwardly andcontact the cam face H9 of the latch lever H4 and move itcounterclockwise against the bias of the spring I I1 until the lug H6clears the hooked end H5 when the latch lever H4 will be returnedand'move the hook H5 to a position overlying the lug-I I6 and thus latchthe toast carriers and the main carriage plate 22 in their toastingposition.

Movement of the carriage plate 22 to"do'wnward-position will also causethe lug'I'I'to contact the spring'76 to close the switch I6 and energizethe signallight I5 to illuminate-the knob I0 to indicate that the breadcarriers have been moved to their toasting position.

The'secondary carriage plate 50 will also be carried along with the'maincarriage Dlate'22 until the lug 55- on plate 50 engages the lug 56 onstop lever I33. Since at this time the bimetal I 06 is cold and inupward bowed position as shown in Fig. 6, the hooked end I46 of lockinglatch I4I will be free of lug I45 of stop lever I33 so that the stoplever I33 is free to rot-ate clockwise against the bias of the springI35. Since the spring 53 which biases the secondary oarriage plate 50 toits downward position is stronger than the spring I35 thestop lever I33will be rotated clockwise by the engagement of the lug 55 of the plate50 with the lug 56 of the stop lever I33 and the stop lever I33 willmove to the position shown in Fig. 6. This will permit the'secondarycarriage plate 50- to move to its lowermost position along with the maincarriage plate 22.

Movement of the secondary carriage plate 50'to' its lowermost positionwill cause the contacts 12 to contact the'fixed contacts 13 so as tosimultaneously energize the main heaters 23 and the auxiliary heater 63to initiate the toasting interval. Movement of the secondary carriageplate 50 will also move the heater 63 and reflector 64 to a positionimmediately above the bimetal I 06. In moving to its lowermost positionthe reflector 64 is moved from the position shown in Figure 3 to aposition to reflect heat from the heater 63 to'the bimetal I06 bycontact of the arm 68 with the cam 61. The final position of thereflector 64 and correspondingly the amount of heat reflected to thebimetal I06 will depend upon the setting of the cam 61. Since thetoaster is cold at this time the spiral bimetal 69 will have moved thecam to a position to reflect more heat, than when the toaster is hot, tothe bimetal I06 regardless of the setting of the manual knob I0.

Heat from the heater'63 will be radiated di-j rectly to the bimetal I06as well as reflected by the reflector 64. This will cause the bimetalI06 to heat up and warp so as to move downwardly. By the time the breadin the toasting chamber is toasted the bimetal I06 will have moved toand past'its dead center position which will cause the bimetal I06 tosnap to its downwardly bowed position under the influence of the springI09. In snapping to its downwardly bowed position the bimetal I06 willimpart a sharp blow to the pin I40 so as to pivot the actuating leverI2I counter-clockwise, causing its rounded end I24 to ciated mechanismtomove to their upper posi tion under the actionof the spring 32. e

The actuating lever I2I was permitted to move downwardly sufficientlyfor its end I24 to contact the lug I I8 of the latch lever I I4 becausethe stop lever I33 was in its clockwise position so that its shoulderI36 was beyond the edge of the abutment I29 of the actuating lever I2 I.As will be seen hereinafter under some conditions it is impossible tomove the actuating lever I2! through the position just described.

When the bimetal I65 snapped to its downward position the stop lever I33was in its clockwise position as shown in Figure 6. However, when thecarriage plate 22 was released the lug 55 when removed from above thelug 55 of the lock lever I33 which permitted the spring I35 to move thelock lever I 33 in a counter-clockwise direction. At this time thelocking latch MI is in the position shown in Figure 5. The lug I45 ofthe stop lever I33 will engage the sloped end of the hook I 46 of leverMI and pivot the lock latch I4I counter-clockwise against the bias ofthe spring I42 until the lug I45 snaps behind the hook I 46 whereby allof the parts will assume the position shown in Fig. 5.

The parts always assume this position immediately after the carriageplate 22 is released and while the bimetal I is still hot. If thebimetal I06 is allowed to cool before a succeeding toasting operation isbegun the bimetal I05 will move to its upward bowed position of Figure 6and remove the hook I46 from in front of the lug I45 leaving the locklever I 33 free to move to the position of Figure 6 when the toastcarriers are again moved to toasting position.

Movement of the carrier plate 22 and the secondary carriage plate 50 toupward position will deenergize the main heaters 23, the auxiliaryheater 53 and the signal light I5. At the same time the auxiliary heater53 and the reflector 64 will be moved upwardly away from the bimetal I06 and the reflector 64 will move under the bias of its spring 65 to theposition shown in Figure 3 so that no heat will be reflected from theheater 53 to the bimetal I05 and thus permit the bimetal I05 to cool asquickly as possible. It has been found that the bimetal I06 will cool ina few seconds.

Operation when hot Assume now that a second toasting operation isinitiated before the bimetal I06 has had time to cool. Bread will beinserted as before and the hand piece 3! moves to its lowermostposition. The main carriage plate 22 and the bread carrier I6 will movedownwardly as before and the signal light I5 will be lit by lug 11closing switch 76 so as to simulate operation even though the toastinginterval has not actually begun.

The secondary carriage plate 50 will move downwardly with the maincarriage plate 22 until its lug 55 comes into contact with the lug 56 ofthe stop lever I33. Since the bimetal I 06 is still hot the parts willbe in the position shown in Figure 5 and the hook I45 of locking latchI4I will overlie the lug I45 of the stop lever I33 and prevent clockwisemovement thereof.

This will arrest movement of the secondary carriage 50 and it will beheld in the position shown in Figure 3. It is to be noted that thereflector 64 is still positioned to direct heat away from the bimetalI06 and the bimetal will continue to cool.

In the matter of a few seconds the bimetal I06 will have cooled andmoved upwardly to a position past its dead center position when theforce of the spring I09 will cause it to snap to its upward bowedposition as shown in Figure 6. In

moving to its upward bowed position the bimetal !06 will contact theinturned tabs I21 and I3I of the actuating lever I2I and move itclockwise. This will move the locking latch I M essentially in avertical direction removing the hook I46 from in front of the lug I45,permitting the stop lever I33 to move clockwise to the position shown inFigure 6 under the bias of spring 53.

The spring 53 will move the secondary carriage plate 53 to its lowermostposition to energize the main heaters 23 and the auxiliary heater 63 andmove the heater 63 and reflector 64 into operative position and thetoasting interval will proceed as previously described.

Thermal timers have a tendency to over-compensate. That is, the thermalelement becomes hotter and hotter with succeeding toasting operation andthe toasting interval becomes shorter and shorter. This tendencyover-runs the tendency of the toaster as a whole to get hotter so thateventually the bread is undertoasted. To overcome this the bimetal 69 isso made that it will turn the cam 51 to move the reflector 64 to aposition where less and less heat is directed to the bimetal I66 insucceeding toasting intervals after the first. This will overcome thetendency of the bimetal I56 to over-compensate.

From the foregoing it can be seen that this invention provides anefficient, accurate toaster timing mechanism in which it is unnecessaryfor the operator to wait after a first toasting operation beforeproceeding with a succeeding one. All that is necessary is for theoperator to insert the new charge and move the manipulating handle toits lowermost position. No further attention is needed from theoperator. The succeeding toasting operation will proceed to completionwithout further attention from the operator regardless of the conditionof the timer when the new charge is inserted.

While I have shown but a single embodiment of my invention it is to beunderstood that this embodiment is to be taken as illustrative only andnot in a limiting sense. I do not wish to be limited to the particularstructure shown and described but to include equivalent variationsthereof except as limited by the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A toaster comprising, bread carriers movable from a bread receivingposition to a toasting position, main heating means, a latch constructedto latch said carriers in toasting position, a thermal timer operable torelease said latch at the end of each toasting interval, said thermaltimer including a thermally responsive element and an auxiliary heatertherefor and a reflector positioned to direct heat from said auxiliaryheater to said thermally responsive element, said heater, reflector andcarriage being so related that said auxiliary heater and reflector ismoved away from said thermally responsive element upon release of saidlatch, manually actuatable means for moving said reflector relative tosaid heater and a thermally responsive element for moving said reflectorrelative to said heater and said first thermally responsive element tovary the time of the toasting intervals.

2. A toaster comprising, a base, main heaters, bread carriers movablefrom an upper bread receiving position to a lower toasting position,secondary means movably carried by said carriage so as to have a portionmovable vertically relative thereto, means for moving said breadcarriers to toasting position, means operable to arrest movement of themovable portion ofsaid secondary means short of its lowermost positionassaidibread carriers are moved to toasting position,--a thermal timerincluding a thermally responsive element and a heater therefor, saidthermally responsive element having a cold position and a hot position,means operable to latch said carriers in toasting position whether saidthermally responsive element is in its hot position or in its coldposition, cooperating means on said base and themovable portion of saidsecondary. means for energizing said heaters, means associated-with saidthermally responsive element and said arrestin means and operative uponmovement of said thermally responsive element-tocold position forreleasing said arresting. means to cause the movable portion of saidsecondary means to move to its lowermost positionisoas to energize saidheaters and additional means associated with said thermally responsiveelement and said latch means operable to release said latch means uponreturn of said thermally responsive element to its hot position.

3. A-toaster including bread carriers movable from a bread receivingposition to a toasting position, a thermal timer including a thermallyresponsiveelement for timing the toasting interval bybeingheated so asto move from a cold position to a hot position, heating means forperforming the toasting function and for heating said thermallyresponsive element, means for movin said carriers to toasting position,means operable to latch said carriers in toasting position whether saidthermally responsive element is in its cold position or in its hotposition, switchmeans cooperating with said carriers and with saidthermally responsive element and operative to-energize said heatingmeans if said-thermallyresponsive element is in its cold position whensaid carriers are moved to toasting position, means-operatively-associated with said thermally responsive element and withsaid switch means and operative to block closing movement of said switchmeans if said thermally responsive element is in itshot position'whensaid carriers are moved to toasting position and means operativelyassociated with said blocking means and operative by movement of saidthermally responsive element to its cold position for moving saidblocking means from its blocking position relative to said switch. meansto permit closing movement of said switch-means.

4. A toaster comprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a secondary carriage carried by said carriers, said secondarycarriage being movable vertically relative to said carriers and beingspring-biased to its downward position, a thermal timer for controllingthe duration of the toasting interval including a thermally responsiveelement mounted on said base and a heater therefor mounted on saidsecondary carriage in a position to heat said thermally responsiveelement when said carriers are in toasting position, said thermallyresponsive element having a cold position and a hot position, means formoving said carriers to toasting position, means for latching saidcarriers in toasting position whether said thermally responsive elementis in its hot or cold position, means carried by said secondary carriagefor energizing said heater when said secondary carriage is in itslowermost position, means for blocking movement of said secondarycarriage to its lowermost osition when said thermally responsive elementis in its hot' position andmeans actuated by movement of said thermallyresponsive element to its cold position for, removing said blockingmeans to permit said secondary carriage to move to its lowermost position under the action of its biasing means.

5. Atoaster comprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a secondary carriage carried by said carriers, said secondarycarriage being movable vertically relative to said carriers and beingspringbiased to downward position, a thermal timer for controlling theduration of the toasting interval including a thermally responsiveelement mounted on said base and a heater therefor:

mounted on said secondary carriage in aiposition tOuhGEJJ said thermallyresponsive element when said carriage is in its lowermost position, saidthermally responsive element having a cold position and a hot position,means for moving said" carriers to toasting position, means forlatchingsaid carriers in toasting position whether said thermally responsiveelement is in its hot or'cold position, means carried by said secondarycarriage for energizing said heater when said secondary carriage is inits lowermost position, means for blocking movement of said secondarycarriage to its lowermost position when said thermally responsiveelement is in its hot position, means actuated by movement of saidthermally respo-nsiveelement to its cold position for removing saidblocking means to permit said secondary carriage to move toits lowermostposition under the action of its biasing spring and a reflector carriedby said secondary carriage above said heater so as to direct heat fromsaid heater to said thermally responsive element when said secondarycarriage is in its lowermost position.

6. A toaster comprising, abase, bread carriers movable froma breadreceiving to a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a secondary carriage carried by said carriers, said secondarycarriage being movable vertically relative to said carriers and beingspring-biased to its downward position, a thermal timer for controllingthe duration of the toasting interval including a thermally responsiveelement mounted on said base and a heater therefor mounted on saidcarriers in a position to heat said thermally responsive element whensaid secondary carriage is in its lowermost position, said thermallyresponsive element having a cold position and a hot position, means formoving said carriers to toasting position, means for latching saidcarriers in toasting position whether said thermally responsive elementis in its hot or cold position, means; carried by said secondarycarriage for energizing said heater when said secondary carriage is inits lowermost position, means for blocking movement of said secondarycarriage to its lowermost position when said thermally responsiveelement is in its hot position, means actuated by movement of saidthermally responsive element to its cold position for removing saidblocking means to permit said secondary carriage tomove to its lowermostposition under the action of its biasing spring, a reflector carried bysaid secondary carriage above said heater so as to direct heat from saidheater to said thermally responsive element when said secondary carriageis in its lowermost position, said reflector being movably mounted so asto assume a position to direct heat from said heater toward and awayfrom said thermally responsive element and means efiective upon move- 13ment of said secondary carriage to its lowermost position for movingsaid reflector to a position to direct heat from said heater to saidthermally responsive element.

7. A toaster comprising, a base, bread carrier movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting po sition and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a secondary carriage carried by said carriers, said secondarycarriage being movable vertically relative to said carriers and beingspring-biased to downward position, a thermal timer for controlling theduration of the toasting interval including a thermally responsiveelement mounted on said base and a heater therefor mounted on saidsecondary carriage in a position to heat said thermally responsiveelement when said secondary carriage is in its lowermost position, saidthermally responsive element having a cold position and a hot position,means for moving said carriers to toasting position, means for latchingsaid carriers in toasting position whether said thermally responsiveelem nt is in its hot or cold position, means carried by said secondarycarriage for energizing said heater when said secondary carriage is inits lowermost position, means for blocking movement of said secondarycarriage to its lowermost position when said thermally responsiveelement is in its hot position, means actuated by movement of saidthermally responsive element to its cold position for removing saidblocking means to permit said secondary carriage to move to itslowermost position under the action of its biasing spring, a reflectorcarried by said secondary carriage above said heater so as to directheat from said heaters to said thermally responsive element when saidsecondary carriage is in its lowermost position, said reflector beingmovably mounted so as to assume a position to direct. heat from saidheater toward and away from said thermally responsive element and meanseffective upon moving said secondary carriage to its lowermost positionfor moving said reflector to a position to direct heat from said heaterto said thermally responsive element, said reflector moving means beingvariable so as to direct more or less heat from said heater to saidthermally responsive element.

8. A toaster comprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting positionand spring-biased to bread receivingposition, means for moving said carriers to toasting position, a thermalelement mounted on said base operative to control the duration of thetoasting intervals, a heater for said thermally responsive elementcarried by said carriers in a position to heat said thermally responsiveelement when said carriers are in toasting position, a reflector carriedby said carriers above said heater for directing more or less heat fromsaid heater to said thermally responsive element, said reflector beingmounted ior movement relative to said carriers to and from a position toeffect radiation of heat from said heater to said thermally responsiveelement, means for moving said carriers to toasting position, meansoperative to latch said carriers in toasting position and means coactingwith said reflector and operative upon movement of said carriers totoasting position for moving said reflector into a positionto directheat from said heater to said thermally responsive element.

9. A toaster comprising, a base,bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting position and being spring-biased to breadreceiving position, means for moving said carriers to toasting position,a thermal element mounted on said base for controlling the duration ofthe toasting intervals, a heater for said thermally responsive elementcarried by said carriers in a position to heat said thermally responsiveelement when said carriers are in toasting position, a reflector carriedby said carriers above said heater for directing more or less heat fromsaid heater to said thermally responsive element, said reflector beingmounted for movement to and from a position to effect radiation of heatfrom said heater to said thermally responsive element, means for movingsaid carriers to toasting position, means for latching said carriers intoasting position and means eiiective upon movement of said carriers totoasting position for moving said reflector to a position to reflectheat from said heater to said thermally responsive element, said lastmentioned means including a movable stop mounted on said base in aposition to engage said reflector and move it to its effective position.

10. A toaster comprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a thermal element mounted on said base for controlling theduration of the toasting intervals, a heater for said thermally rsponsive element carried by said carriers in a position to heat saidthermally responsive element when said carriers are in toastingposition, a reflector carried by said carriers above said heater fordirecting more or less heat from said heater to said thermallyresponsive element, said reflector being mounted for movement to andfrom a position to effect radiation of heat from said heater to saidthermally responsive element, means for moving said carriers to toastingposition, means for latching said carriers in toasting position andmeans effective upon movement of said carriers to toasting position formoving said reflector to a position to reflect heat from said heater tosaid thermally responsive element, said last mentioned means including amovable stop mounted on said base in a position to engage said reflectorand move it to its eflective position and means responsive to ambienttoaster temperature for mov ing said stop for varying the quantity ofheat reflected to said thermally responsive element.

11. A toaster comprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving to a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receivingposition, a thermal element mounted on said base for controlling theduration of the toasting intervals, a heater for said thermallyresponsive element carried by said carriers in a position to heat saidthermally responsive element when said carriers are in toastingposition, a reflector carried by said carriers above said heater fordirecting more or less heat from said heaters to said thermallyresponsive element, said reflector being mounted for movement to andfrom a position to effect radiation of heat from said heater to saidthermally responsive element, means for moving said carriers to toastingposition, means for latching said carriers in toasting position, meanseffective upon movement of said carriers to toasting position for movingsaid reflector to a position to reflect heat from said heater to saidthermally responsive element, said last mentioned means including amovable stop mounted on said base in a position to engage said reflectormove it to its effective position and means responsive to ambienttoaster temperature for moving said stop for varying the quantity ofheat reflected to said thermally responsive element, said stop alsobeing manually adjustable to vary the duration of said toastinginterval.

12-. A-toastercomprising, a base, bread carriers movable from a breadreceiving position to a toasting, position and spring-biased to breadreceiving position, a secondary carriage carried by said carriers, saidsecondary carriage being movable vertically relative to said carriersand springbiased to its lowermost position, a signal light, main heatersfor performing the toasting function, a thermal element mounted on saidbase for controlling the duration of the toasting interval, an auxiliaryheater mounted on said secondary carriage in a position to heat saidthermally responsive element when said secondary carriage is in itslowermost position, a switch mounted on said base for energizing saidsignal light, means for moving said carriers to toast ing position,meanscarried by said carriers for closing said switch, spaced contactsmounted on said base, a bridging contact carried by said secondarycarriage, said contacts being so connected to said main and auxiliaryheaters that said heaters will be energized when said bridging contactcomes into-contact with said spaced contacts, said thermally responsiveelement having a hot position and a cold position, means for latchingsaid carriers in toasting position whether saidthermally responsiveelement is in its hot or cold position, a stop for preventing movementof said secondary carriage to its lowermost position when said thermallyresponsive element is in its hot position and means responsive tomovement of said thermally responsive element from its hot position toits cold position for releasing said stop to permit said secondarycarriage to move to its lowermost position and bring said bridgingcontact into contact with said spaced contacts.

13. A toaster comprising, bread carriers movable from a bread receivingto a toasting position and spring-biased to bread receiving position,heating means, latch means cooperating with said carriers and operativeto latch them in toasting position, a thermal timer coacting with saidlatch means and operative to release it at the end of each toastinginterval, said thermal timer having a cold position and a hot position,said latch means including a latch release lever, an actuating lever, astop lever and a locking latch, said actuating lever being movable withsaid thermal timer in its movements to and from its cold and hotpositions, said latch release lever being spring biased to latchingposition and being positioned to be engaged by said actuating lever uponmovement of said thermal timer to its hot position, said stop leverbeing movable from a position to prevent movement of said actuatinglever to its latch releasing position to a position permitting suchmovement and said locking latch being movable by movement of said timerinto a position to engage said stop lever and hold it in a position toprevent movement of said actuating lever to its releasing position solong as said timer is in its hot position the arrangement being suchthat movement of said thermally responsive element from its coldposition to its hot position will actuate said actuating lever tooperate said latch release lever and movement of said carriers to breadreceiving position will engage said locking latch and stop lever witheach other and prevent movement of said actuating lever in a releasingdirection until said thermally responsive element has returned to itscold position.

14. A toaster comprising; a base for supporting the toaster; a breadcarrier movable from an upper bread receiving position to a toastingposition; main heating means; a latch constructedto latch saidcarrier-intoasting position; and

when said latch is released and toward said thermally responsive elementwhen said carrier is moved to toasting position; said thermallyresponsive element beingmounted on said base in a compartment separatedfrom said main heating means and said base being constructed to providefor thecirculation of I cooling air over said thermally responsiveelement 15, A toaster comprising; a base; main heaters carried by saidbase; a breadcarrier movable relative to said base from a breadreceiving position to a toasting position adjacent said heaters; meansfor moving said carrier to toasting position; a latch positioned tolatch said carrier in toasting position and a thermal timer of theheat-up type operable to release said latch when heated to end eachtoasting interval; said timer including a thermally responsive element,a heat-,

er therefor and a reflector positioned to direct heat from said heaterto said thermally responsive element; said thermally responsive elementbeing mounted in fixed relation to said base in a chamber separated fromsaid main heaters and said heater and reflector being mounted formovement with said carrier; the arrangement being such that said heaterand reflector is in a position adjacent to said thermally responsiveelement when said carrier is in toasting position and in a positionremote from said thermally responsive element when said carrier is inbread receiving position; said base being constructed for thecirculation of cooling air over said thermally responsive element.

'16. A toaster comprising; a base; a bread carrier movable from an upperbread receiving position to a lower toasting position, a secondarycarriage movable with said carrier, said secondary carriage beingmounted for movement relative to said carrier, means positioned to latchsaid carrier in toasting position, a thermal timer operable to releasesaid carriers at the end of each toasting interval, said timer includinga thermally responsive element mounted on said base and a heater mountedon said secondary carriage so that said'heater is adjacent saidthermally responsive element when said carrier is in toasting positionand remote therefrom when said carrier is in bread receiving position,means for arresting movement of said secondary oanriage when saidthermally responsive element is hot, and switch means for energizingsaid heater, said switch means being so related to said carrier and tosaid secondary carriage and to said base as to be operable to energizesaid heater when said bread carrier and said secondary carriage are intheir lowermost position and inoperative to energize said heater wheneither said carrier or said secondary carriage is above its lowermostposition.

17. In a timing device for an electric circuit, a movable support, amanually operable handle for moving said support to initiate a timingperiod, a switch member mounted on said support and movable with saidsupport between circuit opening and circuit closing positions, a

releasable element for holdingsaid switch memher in circuit closingposition upon initiation of a timing period, a heater connected in thecircuit, a thermo-bar closely associated with said heater and heatedthereby when said switch member is in circuit closing position, atension spring across the ends of said thermo-bar flexing saidthermo-bar in one direction when the bar is cold, said thermo-bar whenheated to a predetermined temperature being arranged to flex in theopposite direction against the tension of said spring and suddenlyrelease said element, thereby releasing the switch for movement to openposition to terminate the timing period, stop means, said stop meansbeing movable to a position to arrest movement of said support andprevent movement of said switch member to circuit closing position andbeing movable from its support arresting position to permit said switchmember to move to circuit closing position, and means associated withsaid thermobar and operatively associated with said stop means to movethe latter to its support arresting position when said thermo-bar isheated and to release said stop means for movement from its supportarresting position when said thermobar cools.

13. In a timing device for an electric circuit, a movable support,manually operable means for moving said support to initiate a timingperiod, a switch member mounted on said support and movable therewithbetween circuit opening and closing positions, a releasable element forholding said switch member in circuit closing position upon theinitiation of a timing period, a heater connected in the circuit, athermo-bar associated with said heater and heated thereby when saidswitch member is in circuit closing position, spring means biasing theends of said thermo-bar toward each other to flex said thermo-bar in onedirection when the bar is cold, said thermo-bar when heated to apredetermined temperature being arranged to flex in the oppositedirection against the bias of said spring means and suddenly releasesaid element, thereby releasing the switch for movement to open positionto terminate the timing period, stop means, said stop means beingmovable to a position to arrest movement of said support and preventmovement of said switch member to circuit closing position and beingmovable from its support arresting position to permit said switch memberto move to circuit closing position, and means associated with saidthermobar and operatively associated with said stop means to lock thelatter in its support arresting position when said thermo-bar is heatedand to release said stop means for movement from its support arrestingposition when said thermobar cools.

19. In a timing device for an electric circuit, a movable support,manually operable means for moving said support to initiate a timingperiod, a switch member mounted on said support and movable therewithbetween circuit opening and circuit closing positions, a releasableelement for holding said switch member in circuit closing position uponthe initiation of a timing period, a heater connected in the circuit, athermal timer associated with said heater and heated thereby when saidswitch member is in circuit closing position, said thermal timer beingconstructed to flex in one direction when cold, said thermal timer whenheated to a predetermined temperature being arranged to flex in theopposite direction and suddenly release said element, thereby releasingthe switch for movement to open position to terminate the timing period,stop means, said stop means being movable to a position to arrestmovement of said support and prevent movement of said switch member tocircuit closing position and being movable from its support arrestingposition to permit said switch member to move to circuit closingposition, and means associated with said thermal timer and operativelyassociated with said stop means so as to lock said stop means in itssupport arresting position when said-thermal timer is heated and torelease said stop means for movement from its support arresting positionwhen said thermal timer cools.

20. A toaster comprising, a base, main heaters for performing a toastingfunction, a thermal timer mounted on said base, bread carriers movablefrom bread receiving to toasting position adjacent said main heaters andbeing spring-biased to receiving position, an auxiliary carriageslidably mounted on said bread carriers for vertical reciprocation andbeing spring-biased to downward position, a heater mounted on saidauxiliary carriage in a position to be located above said timer whensaid carriers are moved to toasting position, means for moving saidcarriers to toasting position, means for arresting movement of saidauxiliary carriage as said carriers are moved to toasting position toposition said heater above said timer, control means actuatable tocontrol said heaters to initiate a toasting interval and means actuatedby said timer for terminating a toasting interval aiter its initiation.

ANTHONY G. I-IORVATH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,862,733 Wright June 14, 19322,167,121 McCreary et al. July 25, 1939 2,196,394 Ireland Apr. 9, 19402,268,655 Gomersall Jan. 6, 1942 2,271,485 Koci Jan. 27, 1942 2,347,385Wright et al. Apr. 25, 1944 2,426,620 Koci Sept. 2, 1947 2,429,475McNa-iry et a1 Oct. 21, 1947 2,436,735 Walder et al. Feb. 24, 19482,459,170 Koci Jan. 18, 1949 2,508,464 McCullough May 23, 1950

